Surviving the Heat

July 2, 2009 By 10 Comments

Our weather has been nothing less than wonky this year but the heat is in full swing now. We’re averaging around 110 degrees and some god-awful humidity has descended upon us. What a horrible, horrible thing humidity is.

Every year for the past several years, we’ve managed to bump up the temperature setting on our AC. What started at 84 at night and 80 during the day, is now 86 at night and between 83-85 during the day. It’s been a slow acclimation but it’s working. Anything lower and we’re using throw blankets. And I’m sorry, but if you have to use a throw blanket in the summer (and you don’t have the flu) you could stand the turn up that AC and save a few bucks (and tons of CO2!).

Last year, I wrote about all the ways to stay cool in the summer, while using less energy and decreasing your AC bill (you can now find that here: Home Heating: Energy-Efficient Alternatives). Not everything on that list is applicable to our home, but here’s what we do that makes a difference:

  • Ceiling fans
  • Swamp cooler
  • Ice packs (rarely ever needed)
  • Seal drafts
  • Keep blinds closed
  • Cook outside
  • Plants and trees to shade house
  • Wood mulch instead of rock mulch (which collects heat)
  • Solar screens (huge help!! we take them down in the winter)
  • Thermostat timers
  • Closing some AC vents
  • Cold showers
  • As little clothing as possible
  • Acclimate to higher temps
  • Unbearable afternoons spent at the library ;)

ETA: Hubby thought of some more things we do:

  • lighter or no blankets on the bed
  • sleeping nekked (only he gets to do this)
  • using the clothesline (we do it regardless but it reduces the heat)
  • cold drinks and foods
  • physical activities in the AM, lazy in the afternoon

I’ve found a few drafts under our doors that I need to insulate or seal somehow. We’ve never gotten around to installing an attic fan. I’ve also been looking into a Time-of-Use service with our power company (you pay less for energy used during off hours than during peak hours) but I haven’t made the leap yet.

The garden has greatly decreased our micro-climate’s average temperature. Our house use to run a bit higher but is now averaging lower than the city-wide average. Of course, once you’ve hit 105, it’s all the same anyway.

How do you navigate the summer heat? Can you add any tips to this home cooling alternatives list?

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Heat and Gardenaut

May 19, 2009 By 4 Comments

The heat is upon us. Not even fully. The weekend temps hit 104 degrees (city-wide average). Our house tends to register a little higher than average and we still have another 10 degrees to go. We’ve been managing by applying as many of these summer cooling tips as possible and using our swamp cooler. Justin has been working in even more extreme temps, so he’s been the one trying to push us to go AC free. But yesterday, when he found me in a half-nekked, sweaty puddle on the floor in front of the industrial sized fan he uses for the jobsite, he finally turned it on.

Can I just say how incredibly efficient I am when I’m not overheated? I can cook dinner without fainting. I can actually clean the house. It sucks to have the windows shut up but oh my, how lovely I feel. Why in the world anyone ever settled in this climate before the invention of AC is beyond me.

Zeb never seemed to notice that the heat was off, just as he didn’t seem affected by keeping the heater so low during the winter. He has however commented on how cold the house feels now, despite the fact we’ve kept the thermostat relatively high.

We’ve managed to fluctuate it between 80 and 84 degrees (F). Not all houses are able to go this high and still feel comfortable. I’m not sure why ours can – placement of windows and trees perhaps? I must say however, that I was feeling close to being acclimated and was a bit disappointed (although not enough to say so) that he turned the AC on. There’s no going back now. It’s too heavenly.

One last thing:

I’ve been asked to be a regular contributor at Gardenaut! You can read my intro post here. How cool is that? They have a very awesome site going. Take a moment to poke around, comment, subscribe. It’s still a fairly new site but some cool things for sure. And I’m sure they’ll retract their offer just as soon as they realize I have no idea what I’m talking about. ;)

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Green Meme #3

March 18, 2009 By 1 Comment

Guidelines:

1) Link to Green Meme Bloggers.
2) Link back to whoever tagged you. (no need to wait to be tagged!)
3) Include meme number
4) Include these guidelines in your post
5) Tag 3 other green bloggers.

Green Meme #3

1. Are you keeping your temperature (heating/cooling) systems on low? If you have radiators are they fitted with thermostats?

Right now they are off completely and will remain off until mid to late May. Our heater was set to 55 (F) at night and 60 in the mornings and most of the day. In the summer, our AC is never set below 80 and sometimes we can manage 84.

2. If yes to the above, what do you to keep warm/cool without resorting to turning up those numbers?

This winter we wore many layers. And stayed near the sunny windows when possible. We also used multiple blankets on the bed and a heating pad at night sometimes for me since I get colder easier than the guys.

3. Do you turn your fridge temperature down when it has less items in it?

No, I keep it full  – sometimes with water jugs. I’m wondering how much power is used to turn it high again after having it down and whether this actually evens out in the long-run or causes more wear and tear on the engine. Sorta like if you turn your heat/AC off when you’re gone to save power and then it has to work harder when it’s back on. Who knows…

4. Do you unplug unused small appliances?

I never remember to do this. Ever. I got one of those electrical plug boxes that sit inside a plug (turns two outlets to four or six) in hopes that I would remember to just pull it out. I don’t.

5. Do you switch off rather than leave on standby; TV/computer/dvd player/etc?

Nothing goes on standby in our house. Everything is shut off. Zeb usually forgets his computer but now that’s it’s downstairs I will notice and turn it off if he forgets.

6. Do you own (or will you purchase in the future) energy-efficient (star-rated) home appliances?

All of our appliances are Energy Star except the washer and dryer that came with the house. We don’t use the dryer, though. Eventually (when it dies) we’ll replace the washer with a front loading one.

7. Do you have any green goals/hopes for the next few months?

Getting my garden in (probably start a lot this weekend), sell our second vehicle, get our solar oven finished, other misc stuff….

I was tagged by Mon at Holistic Mama. I’m tagging LisaZ, Denise and Elizabeth…

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Saving Power

June 28, 2008 By 3 Comments

I always thought I did pretty well at conserving energy, but this year we’ve kicked that into high gear. Well, last year’s efforts look abysmal compared to this year.

- Our gas usage this time last year: 11 therms
- Our gas usage this month: 8 therms

That’s about a 25% decrease by line drying alone! But here’s the best one:

- Our power usage this time last year: 1,066 kWh or a daily average of 33.3
- Our power usage this month: 500 kWh or a daily average of 17.2

Nearly a 50% decrease!! I’m ecstatic!

I may never get as low as I’d like with our 115 degree temps during the summer, but I am going to continue working on it. A solar oven (in the works) will help further decrease our gas consumption. I’d like to own a hand-cranked blender some day, as well as get better at killing vampire power. And a tankless water heater would rock my face off. As would an outdoor shower. Someday I will get our power usage down far enough and have saved enough money from our conservation efforts to slather our rooftop with solar panels.

:sigh: Be still my dreamy heart.

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